text: From racemic acid found in grapes; from Latin racemus, meaning a bunch of grapes. This acid, when naturally produced in grapes, is only the right-handed version of the molecule, better known as tartaric acid. In many Germanic languages racemic acid is called “grape acid” e.g. German traubensäure and Swedish druvsyra. Carl von Linné gave red elderberry the scientific name Sambucus racemosa as the Swedish name, druvfläder, means grape elder, so called because its berries grow in a grape-like cluster.